Belagerent

Most recent activity

• Mudguards

  in Bikes & Bits • 3 hours, 27 minutes

  

  I'm just scaremongering. I'm sure its fine. I've never had metal guards except on a 30 year old commuter (and they stressed and fractured but it was 30 y/o)

• Mudguards

  in Bikes & Bits • 6 hours, 54 minutes

  

  Are you not scared your commuter will get bashed against things and the guards will stress and fracture?

• Front rack suggestions

  in Cycle Touring and Bikepacking • 1 day, 2 hours

  

  Thanks, ordered :)

• Front rack suggestions

  in Cycle Touring and Bikepacking • 1 day, 6 hours

  

  BLB front rack vs Pelago ? Any thoughts?

• Dental Insurance (warning: low quality photo images only)

  @Belagerent started

  • 24 comments
  • 2,129 views

  @bigshape replied
• Dental Insurance (warning: low quality photo images only)

  in Current Projects • 2 days, 11 hours

  

  Hmm, this is useful info! Obviously I have no idea where the hell the reattached rivet is now so I'll probably just have to wait for it to fail, but I'll get hold of a quick link. I did kind of mean to but then... Just didn't.

  Thanks for the heads up either way. There are some things you have to learn the hard way..

• Dental Insurance (warning: low quality photo images only)

  in Current Projects • 5 days, 7 hours

  

  

  Got the frame back after having the headset fitted. I asked the bike shop to fit whatever second hand mtb stem they had kicking around and they gave me this marin one, seems fine though I guess I kind of wanted a straight stem. I'll see how it rides.

  Got to work on two things I've never done before last night, setting up V brakes and breaking + reattaching a chain. Setting up the Vs wasn't too bad, I had to use the furthest setting on the brake studs because the pull felt mushy otherwise, but they look like they'll work + don't rub or anything. I feel like I've made some mistake with the cable outers though, at the moment its covered all the way along (as it was on the dahon) but I feel like generally brakes have a bit without cable outers? Does this make the brakes feel sharper?

  Also what do people use to cut brake outers? I used my bolt cutters but they didn't leave a very clean cut and there was some shard of metal or something that I had to pull out the way with tweezers.

  Anyway aside from that I fixed up the chain with my new park tools chain tool. It's quite satisfying squeezing rivets out. It's not much fun trying to push them back in though, but I persevered. Seems like a useful skill if I go on some tours.

  I also reattached the small chainring with some chainring bolts I got off amazon. They don't use the stupid chainring tool thing so were a lot easier to reapply and I didn't have to buy that dumb tool.

  Next I guess...derailleur? Front brakes? Exciting times.

• Hiking, Scrambling, Mountaineering, and Climbing

  in Miscellaneous and Meaningless • 1 week

  

  Going to the lake district in April, hoping to 'bag some peaks'

  What's the minimum amount of safety equipment? Not planning anything requiring climbing/scrambling, just steep hiking should be enough.

  Currently bringing whistles, spare batteries, small first aid kit, compass, map, torches etc and a workmate has offered to lend me his blizzard bag, but wondered if there was anything else? I know it's impossible to plan for everything, but if shit happens and we have to call someone to save us I don't want them to side eye me because I didn't take some essential and commonly available piece of kit with us that would have saved them the bother.

• What's the point of hi viz?

  in General • 1 week

  

  To me, the minor statistical advantage isn't worth the effect I believe my wearing hivis will have socially:

  People may think that its the responsibility of a cyclist to avoid being run over by a driver
  People may think that cycling is so dangerous you must take every available precaution to avoid being run over by a driver
  People may think that if you don't wear a special jacket then you are responsible for being run over by a driver
  People may all start wearing hi-vis, which may decrease the already minor efficacies of hi-vis, meaning the same amount of cyclists get run over by drivers but now we all look stupid as we die
  People may normalise wearing hi-vis, expect cyclists to wear hi-vis, and become less able to notice cyclists not wearing hi-vis. Wearing hi-vis may well be a zero sum game. The more visible I am, the less visible others are, until we all wear hi-vis and look stupid as we die.
  People may think that cycling is uncool

  I don't want to forward any of the above, hence no hi-vis.

  The reason that people don't want to have a "reasonable discussion" about hi-vis is that to many even asking the question, or having the same, repeatable, pointless discussion, is in itself a form of deflecting blame, taking up the time of the vulnerable (in this case non car road users) to help assuage the guilt of others, and in the end, doesn't really ever change anyone's opinion.

• What's the point of hi viz?

  in General • 1 week

  

  Because it's uncool and anything that makes cycling look uncool at this point is a climate crime.